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Preparations for the 16th European Week of Regions & Cities are underway

The kick-off meeting for the 2018 European Week of Regions and Cities (EWRC) was held at the Committee of Regions in Brussels, on January 25th.  The EWRC is an annual event that is not be missed, as it is the largest European event held in the Belgian capital. Indeed the 15th edition of 2017 involved over 6 000 participants from 74 different countries, 187 partner regions and cities from 28 countries, 137 workshops, and 600 speakers. The upcoming edition, to be held October 8-11, will benefit from a change in venue that will be able to include all activities in the same area- that is the Brussels’ Meeting Centre The Square.

Besides reviewing the application technicalities to become an event partner (Deadline March 30, 2018) and the 2018 Application guideline, the meeting was also the opportunity to announce the thematic clusters:

  • Energy, Climate, Environment
  • Social inclusion, citizenship, employment
  • Governance & administrative capacity
  • Research & Innovation
  • Sustainable transport and mobility
  • International cooperation, EU as a global actor
  • ICT and digital
  • Agriculture & food production
  • Maritime affairs
  • Security & civil protection

In addition to the latter, the priority themes, which will be favoured during the partner application selection, are: Territorial development (Regional, Urban, Rural); the Future of Cohesion Policy, EU Budget; and Education, Culture and Youth. Applications will be considered in regards to their quality, interactivity with people, co-creation and correspondence to the cluster and priority themes.

For all who may be interested, it is worthwhile to remember the upcoming 16th EWRC seeks to concentrate on concrete benefits and progress that have been achieved, on bottom-up experiences, in order to showcase to regions and stakeholders what is happening around Europe. Such goals are all the more relevant in sight of the fact that the event will take place at a crucial time in regards to the Multi-Annual Financial Framework planning.

While the thematic clusters show us that no consideration is given to sport and physical activity yet, the holistic approach of the PACTE project sheds light on the possibility, and necessity, of cross-sector collaboration amongst local urban, health, transport, and education policies, in order to provide citizens with facilitated access to regular movement. It hence shows that physical activity and sport can advocate to be included in policy areas, such as those listed above.





Sport et citoyenneté